I had the good fortune to be able to teach in Rio de Janeiro again this June. This is always very rewarding, and as usual I made many new friends and colleagues.
From June 9 to the 19th I taught a short course on U.S. constitutional concepts (theories of the constitution, judicial review, due process, and equal protection) at the Universidade Gama Filho where I remain on the faculty as an affiliated faculty member.
On June 12, 2008 I was invited to speak as part of a panel at the International Symposium of Contemporary Legal Theories and Institutional Design – 20 Years of the Brazilian Federal Constitution at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. I spoke about foreign views on legal theory with Prof. Jeffrey Brand-Ballard from George Washington University and Dr. Josep Joan Moreso i Mateos, the Rector of Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona Spain. The event was a wonderful exchange of ideas which was sponsored by the U.S. Consulate General. The Assistant Cultural Attache Carla Waehneldt does a fantastic job with these events.
On June 16, I took part in a ceremony to dedicate a library of U.S. legal materials that were donated by the Dean and Faculty of the Mercer University School of Law to the Escola da Magistratura Regional Federal da 2a Regino [EMARF]. The collection is housed in the main library of the Tribunal Regino Federal [TRF], and consists of several hundred volumes in all areas of the law. The library will be open to the public for anyone in Brazil wishing to do research in U.S. law.
I also gave a short talk on U.S. due process issues to the judges at EMARF on June 16.
Finally, on June 17, 2008 I traveled to the city of Petropolis to meet with the faculty and students at the Universidade Catholica Petropolis. Almost 60 students and faculty stayed until nearly 10:00 pm discussing the U.S. Supreme Court with me. Earlier in the day I had the privilege to have a private tour of the Imperial Museum in Petropolis.
All of these events were coordinated by my good friend and frequent collaborator Fernanda Duarte, and were generously supported by a grant from the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio de Janeiro
